Rick's Daily Tips

How to keep your WordPress blog free of broken links

Posted on October 28, 2018

Update: Unfortunately, it’s been discovered that the “Broken Link Checker” plugin mentioned in this post has a very serious security flaw and the plugin’s author has chosen not to fix it.

Therefore I can no long recommend the use of this plugin.

I now recommend using the web-based broken link checking tool on this page.

Note: The original post continues below…

Broken links are a blogger’s worst nightmare. In addition to providing your blog’s visitors with a poor user experience, they also give your blog a bad reputation with the major search engines, and your search rankings can suffer as a consequence.

Even worse, if you sell advertising on your blog, broken links also make your ad space less valuable.

Tracking down broken links used to involve a boatload of manual labor. We had to visit each page and post and click on all the links to see if they were still valid. But now a nifty WordPress plugin called Broken Link Checker makes it easy to find all the broken links on your entire blog without lifting a finger. [Read more…]

Q&A: Can I transfer the Windows license from my dead laptop to a new PC?

Posted on October 23, 2018

Question from Leonard M.: I have an HP laptop that recently got ruined when my basement bedroom flooded. I was told that it can’t be fixed.

I’m planning to build a new desktop PC from a bare bones kit and I’m hoping I can install the Windows 7 that came with the dead laptop on it because I really don’t want to switch to Windows 10.

Will I be able to install my old Windows 7 on the new computer? I have a set of restore DVDs that I made from the laptop when I first got it.

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Do you use a Norton security product on your PC? If so, your Internet could stop working on November 15!

Posted on October 22, 2018

Symantec Corporation has just announced the “retirement” of their Norton ConnectSafe DNS service.

If you have a PC that’s running any version of Norton Antivirus, your machine could also be using Norton ConnectSafe.

If so, you’ll need to switch to a different DNS service by November 15, 2018 to prevent your Internet service from coming to a screeching halt.

Important: This change won’t affect Norton Antivirus users who aren’t also using the Norton ConnectSafe DNS service. [Read more…]

Q&A: What’s the best way to hide the date/time on the comments on my WordPress blog?

Posted on October 21, 2018

Question from Keisha P.: I write a fairly popular WordPress blog and I occasionally change the dates on some of my older posts to put them back onto the first page of the blog.

But that’s causing a problem because the comments on those posts still have the old dates/times on them. I’m afraid my readers will notice the old dates and realize that the posts aren’t really new.

I’m using the Genesis framework and Executive Pro child theme on this blog. I know I can remove the code that displays the comments’ date and time from the Genesis module but I’m hoping there’s a better way. Do you know of one?

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: Why can’t I install apps from the Microsoft Store in Windows 10?

Posted on October 21, 2018

Question from Dawn F.: My friend told me about a Windows app called “TuneIn Radio” that lets you listen to live radio on your computer.

I found the app in the Microsoft Store but when I click on it to install it nothing happens. I tried installing a couple of other apps too just as a test and none of them will install.

Can you tell me how to fix this? I really want to give TuneIn Radio a try.

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]